When games begin April 19, the NBA playoffs have major storylines to follow. Biggest question: Are the San Antonio Spurs sharp enough for one more championship run? The NBA's best teams go at in the Western Conference, where the eventual winner will be a survivor.

SN's Sean Deveney and DeAntae Prince go head to head in their evaluations of each playoff series. Here's what you need to know before each series begins.

Eastern Conference

The odds

This was as good a coaching job as Rick Carlisle has done in what has been a terrific career. Once again, the Mavs slapped together a club after missing out on their big free-agent prize (Dwight Howard), and despite serious holes on the roster, managed to win 49 games and earn a playoff seed.

Of course, that seed is No. 8, and that means Dallas has the Spurs. There is the Texas rivalry here, as well as the pairing of two Hall of Famers who spent their entire careers with their teams — Dirk Nowitzki and Tim Duncan — but the Spurs have far outpaced the Mavericks in recent years, beating them nine consecutive times.

The Mavs can make this an interesting series, simply because they make 38.4 percent of their 3-pointers and have a wild-card scorer in Monta Ellis. But the Spurs are far more consistent, and come into this series with even their old guys — Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker — entirely rested and healthy.

Prediction: Spurs in 5.

Series schedule

San Antonio won season series 4-0; * - if necessary; all times ET Game 1: at San Antonio; Sunday, 1 p.m., TNT
Game 2: at San Antonio; Wednesday, 8 p.m., NBA TV
Game 3: at Dallas; April 26, 4:30 p.m., TNT
Game 4: at Dallas; April 28, 9:30 p.m., TNT
*Game 5: at San Antonio; April 30, TBD
*Game 6: at Dallas: May 2, TBD
*Game 7: at San Antonio; May 4, TBD

Yes, Sean, both of these teams are located in Texas. But the in-state rivalry you speak of went away with Tyson Chandler. Since Mark Cuban decided to let Chandler walk after the 2011 title win, the Spurs have had a clear leg up.

That said, Carlisle and Nowitzki have done their best to work with what they have. To start the year, with Ellis and Jose Calderon coming in, it didn't look like that would be enough to post a respectable season. Both have outperformed expectations, however.

The problem for the Mavericks is that the pairing of Ellis and Calderon will meet their match against the Spurs. Kawhi Leonard will give Ellis fits with his defense, and Tony Parker is almost certain terrorize Calderon with his offensive ability.

Oklahoma City is confounding on a few levels. Its stars are among the NBA's best, but the sum of their parts don't pass the sniff test.

Because of the slowed development of Jeremy Lamb and Perry Jones, the Thunder rely heavily on Derek Fisher and Caron Butler. Both are serviceable, but probably shouldn't be among the eight-best players on a championship roster.

All-world Kevin Durant and healthy Russell Westbrook can solve that problem, however. And this series to start the postseason could test that theory.

The Grizzlies play defense, and they are sure to key in on Durant and Westbrook. While the Grizzlies don't have enough to overtake the Thunder, they could provide the blueprint for others down the road.

Prediction: Thunder in 5.

Series schedule

Oklahoma City won season series 3-1; * - if necessary; all times ETGame 1:Thunder 100, Grizzlies 68Game 2: at Oklahoma City; Monday, 8 p.m., TNT
Game 3: at Memphis; April 24, 8 p.m., TNT
Game 4: at Memphis; April 26, 9:30 p.m., ESPN
*Game 5: at Oklahoma City; April 29, TBD
*Game 6: at Memphis; May 1, TBD
*Game 7: at Oklahoma City; May 3, TBD

There are certain elements that can guarantee an underdog a shot at an upset in an NBA playoff series.

First, play slow — by slowing down the game, you limit possessions, you expose your weaknesses less, and you have a better chance at keeping the games close.

Second, have good big guys. That allows you to clog the paint on the defensive end, and can get you easy baskets inside late in close games.

The Grizz play the slowest pace in the league. And they have big guys — Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph — who average 32.0 points and 17.3 rebounds per game. Throw in Mike Conley, one of the most underrated point guards in the NBA, and the Grizz are intriguing.

Having said that, Randolph has aged and Gasol was injured to start the season, so the pair was not quite as dominant as it was in years past. OKC might not pass DeAntae's "sniff test" (not sure what that is, but isn't it how we used to determine if unlaundered clothes were wearable in college?) as a champion, but with Durant and Westbrook, this group should have enough to get by the Grizzlies.

Anyone who has watched the Warriors enough knows that they have the potential to lose to anybody, even on their home floor — whether it's Minnesota, Denver, Charlotte or the Wizards. But you also know that the Warriors, when Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry are making shots, can beat anybody, too.

With the Clippers bringing star power — Blake Griffin, Chris Paul and coach Doc Rivers — of their own, this figures to be the most entertaining series of the first round.

Griffin has had his issues with the Warriors, including a postgame confrontation with Jermaine O'Neal in March and Thompson accusing him of flopping this week. How he keeps his focus will be critical, especially if the Warriors need to have David Lee on the floor to provide interior offense.

Yes, Andrew Bogut is out indefinitely with a cracked rib, and that damages the Warriors' interior defense. But I still expect these games to go down to Curry and Thompson making or missing shots. I am betting they'll be making those shots.
Prediction: Golden State in 6.

As a former point guard (I was bad at it, hence the writing.), I'll take a different view of this series. In Curry and Chris Paul, the Warriors and Clippers have players who must have the pulse of their teams at all times in order for them to succeed. At this point, Paul is better at that aspect. There is also the small matter of Paul having a much better cast to corral.

Curry has the potential to get hot and take over a series. He proved that last year, in the first postseason appearance of his career. But it's hard to look at Curry's teammates and imagine them coming out of a series against the Clippers, who have as much star power as there is in the NBA. Count on Paul and Blake Griffin to push the Clippers forward here.

Houston has a clear identity and style of play. Problem is, outside of Dwight Howard and Patrick Beverly, that identity doesn't include much defense. Sure, the Rockets fill it up with the best of them, but James Harden doesn't even feign defensive effort. That just doesn't work in the postseason — unless you face a team that is equally bad on defense.

The Blazers are that team. They were the NBA's 16th-best defensive team, but they boast one of the NBA's best offenses. Coincidently, the Rockets and Blazers were the fourth-and fifth-best offensive teams.

That is really what this series will come down to — which team plays better on offense.

Houston has more to work with on that end. Harden is one of the NBA's best scorers and his complementary compatriots are sure to outplay the Blazers' shallow bench.

Prediction: Rockets in 6.

Series schedule

Houston won season series 3-1; * - if necessary; all times ETGame 1: at Houston; Sunday, 9:30 p.m., TNT
Game 2: at Houston; Wednesday, 9:30 p.m., TNT
Game 3: at Portland; April 25, 10:30 p.m., ESPN
Game 4: at Portland; April 27, 9:30 p.m., TNT
*Game 5: at Houston; April 30, TBD
*Game 6: at Portland; May 2, TBD
*Game 7: at Houston; May 4, TBD

I am going to take the opposite path to the same end — I like the Rockets here, not because they will play better offense, but because they will be able to clamp down and get defensive stops late in games. The Blazers won't.

That is why they brought in Howard last summer and why they have Beverley in the starting five — those two give the Rockets some semblance of a defensive identity. When crunch time hits, if you can have Howard harassing LaMarcus Aldridge and Beverley in Damian Lillard's jersey, it's advantage, Houston. (Interesting to see how long it takes the good folks of Portland to learn to despise Beverley, by the way.)

It should be an entertaining series — in four games this season, the teams combined to score 225 points per game. But it won't be offense that decides it.